Originally Posted by
soaringhigh650
Was there ever much light aircraft (2-8 seaters) operating from Heathrow, Birmingham and Manchester at some point in the past?
The only reference I've seen for Heathrow was the Heathrow-Gatwick service operated by Westward Airways in 1969-70 with an Islander. Towards the end loads were so light that they chartered a Piper Cherokee, presumably taking up to 3 passengers, to operate some of these flights.
Back in the 1950s there were a number of Dragon Rapide (8 passenger) operators, including one, Island Air Services, which did large numbers of sightseeing circuits from alongside the spectators enclosure. One of their aircraft was lost when it got into the wake turbulence of an arriving Straocruiser when trailing it on approach.